June 05, 2013

Creamy Onion Puree: A Reliable Stand-in For Mashed Potatoes?

Southern Living (May 2013)

Truth be told, it's probably been years since we had mashed potatoes.

Not only are they on the unhealthy, carb-heavy end of the spectrum, we just don't like them that much. Oh sure, we like butter, salt and gravy just as much as the next guys. But the actual potatoes? Eh.

So when we saw this recipe in Southern Living, we were intrigued -- and skeptical. Could an onion puree really be an improvement on mashed potatoes?

At first, we assumed this was meant as a healthier alternative to potatoes, but that isn't the intention here. The puree has plenty of fat to give it flavor -- there's three tablespoons of butter and one tablespoon of olive oil. Thyme is also in the mix for additional flavor.

Turns out, it takes a whole lot of onions to get four small servings of Onion Puree. The recipe calls for six large onions. Slicing them, we thought that surely this would make a huge bowl of pureed onions. But then they cook down and down and down, into a relatively small side dish.

But a side dish we loved. The finished dish is buttery and delicious, with a wonderful, rich flavor that's so much deeper and more interesting than plain ol' mashed potatoes. Since sweet onions are used, the onion flavor is not overpowering. In fact it's very smooth, balanced by the herbs and fat.

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Creamy Onion Puree: A Reliable Stand-in For Mashed Potatoes?

Southern Living (May 2013)

Truth be told, it's probably been years since we had mashed potatoes.

Not only are they on the unhealthy, carb-heavy end of the spectrum, we just don't like them that much. Oh sure, we like butter, salt and gravy just as much as the next guys. But the actual potatoes? Eh.

So when we saw this recipe in Southern Living, we were intrigued -- and skeptical. Could an onion puree really be an improvement on mashed potatoes?

At first, we assumed this was meant as a healthier alternative to potatoes, but that isn't the intention here. The puree has plenty of fat to give it flavor -- there's three tablespoons of butter and one tablespoon of olive oil. Thyme is also in the mix for additional flavor.

Turns out, it takes a whole lot of onions to get four small servings of Onion Puree. The recipe calls for six large onions. Slicing them, we thought that surely this would make a huge bowl of pureed onions. But then they cook down and down and down, into a relatively small side dish.

But a side dish we loved. The finished dish is buttery and delicious, with a wonderful, rich flavor that's so much deeper and more interesting than plain ol' mashed potatoes. Since sweet onions are used, the onion flavor is not overpowering. In fact it's very smooth, balanced by the herbs and fat.